Options Monitor

 

The Options Monitor is a tabbed window composed of rows of symbols and columns of data. Calls are on the left side of the window, puts are on the right side of the window, and the strike price is in the center.

Underlying price, number of calendar days until expiration (DTE), expiration, volatility, and implied volatility shift are displayed for calls and puts at the top of the window. If WhatIf parameters have been applied, then both actual and WhatIf values are displayed. The volatility calculation is determined in volatility preferences for options.

At the Money is highlighted with a yellow background. This color can be changed in Options Monitor preferences. You can also select a theme and change colors for yesterday, old, and stale data using preferences.

You can have more than one monitor open at a time. To open the monitor

Columns

The default data columns are:

      Ask price (A)

      Bid price (B)

      Contract open interest (OI Con)

      Delta (Delta)

      Implied volatility (ImpVt)

      Option price (P Op)

      Option price net change (NC P Op)

      Theoretical volatility (TheoV)

To add a column, right-click the grid, then click Add Columns. The column is added to both calls and puts.

To remove a column, select it, then press the Delete button on your keyboard.  The Strike column cannot be removed.

To move a column, drag and drop it.

You can sort columns by ascending or descending strike price.

Entering a symbol

You can type:

      symbol prefix (e.g. EP)

      symbol prefix with month (EPZ)

      symbol prefix with month and year (EPZ7)

      symbol prefix with relative month (EP?1)

      full or short option instrument name (C.EPF1617650 or C.EP_F16.17650)

If you enter a symbol prefix, the At the Money row is selected. If you enter an options instrument, the row for that instrument is selected.

Copying data to Excel

To copy…

take this action…

all data

right-click the grid, then click Copy All to Excel

all call or put data

click the call or put heading row, right-click the grid, then click Copy to Excel

column

select a column, right-click the grid, then click Copy to Excel

row

select a row, right-click the grid, then click Copy to Excel

 

After copying the data to the clipboard, open Excel and paste the data.

If you use RTD, decimal format is used.

Prices do not reflect Cost mode.

Opening other applications

Double-click a row to open the application selected in System preferences. (Preferred Action on Double-click on a Symbol)

Right-click the grid, then click one of the application options: Time & Sales, Snap Quote, trading application, and chart.

 

See Working with the Options Window to learn more about WhatIf.

Options Monitor toolbar

Button

Description

>> 

<<>>

<< 

 

Click this button to move forward. Right-click this button to move back.

Actuals

Click to reset WhatIf values. This button is not active if WhatIf values have not been changed.

Cost

Click to display the notional value of the option premium.

Click it again to return to the regular display.

When cost is on, a multiplier field is displayed:

Type a number to multiply the notional value of the option premium by.

WhatIf

Click to open Options Parameters.

 

Options Monitor preferences

Change at the money coloring and coloring for the background and foreground for yesterday, old, and stale on the Options Monitor Preferences window. To open this window, right-click the grid, then click Preferences.

 

Other colors, such as Daily Net Up, Daily Net Down, and Daily Net Unchanged, can be changed on the Options Colors window. (From the Options Window, click the Setup button, then click Options Colors.)